Houthi rebels vow retaliation after U.S. strikes with stealth bombers

The United States conducted a series of airstrikes on five underground ammunition depots belonging to Houthi rebels in Yemen, utilizing strategic B-2 stealth bombers, the U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on Wednesday night. 

This marked the first known use of the advanced B-2 bombers in the ongoing U.S. operations against the Houthis, a group backed by Iran.

The strikes targeted multiple underground facilities housing various types of weapons used by the Houthis to attack both civilian and military vessels throughout the region. 

“The U.S. forces targeted several Houthi installations, disrupting their capacity to threaten maritime operations,” Austin said in a statement. He emphasized that the use of the B-2 Spirit bombers demonstrates the U.S. military's global reach and its ability to strike “anytime and anywhere.”

In response to the strikes, the Houthi rebels accused the U.S. of escalating aggression in line with Israeli and American actions in Palestine, Lebanon, and Yemen. 

“The American aggression will not go unanswered,” the Houthi political bureau stated, while reaffirming their support for Palestinians in Gaza and for Lebanon. The Houthi-aligned Al-Massira TV reported 15 strikes at dawn on Thursday, targeting sites in the northern and southern parts of Sanaa and Saada, the rebels' stronghold.

This U.S. operation follows a series of Houthi attacks on Israeli-linked ships and is seen as a significant escalation. 

The Houthis have been conducting these strikes for months, framing them as part of their solidarity with Hamas in the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Despite regular U.S. and U.K. strikes on Houthi infrastructure, the rebel group's operational capacity remains largely intact.